The study showed that 19 percent of Iraq war veterans qualified as having a “mental health concern,” compared with 11 percent of veterans who had served in Afghanistan and about 8 percent of those who had been deployed to other locations.

Longer Look

The database provided a lengthier look at veterans’ use of mental health services.

During the first year after returning home, 35 percent of Iraq war veterans accessed mental health services and 12 percent were diagnosed with a mental health problem.

“It is not clear why there was such a high use of mental health services without a mental illness diagnosis,” write Hoge and colleagues. They call the rate “markedly higher” in Iraq war veterans, compared with veterans who served in Afghanistan and elsewhere, as well as rates in service members before deployment.

Two-thirds of service members who accessed mental health services did so within two months of returning home, the study also shows. That’s “encouraging,” write the researchers, because identifying problems early is the first step to treatment.

However, studies have shown increased rates of mental health problems three to four months after deployment, suggesting that there may still be “considerable barriers to care,” Hoge’s team writes.